News

Digital signage sails into Team New Zealand base for America's Cup

July 2, 2013

Digital signage player provider BrightSign LLC today announced that its players have been selected to power the digital signage network in Emirates Team New Zealand's America's Cup hospitality center in San Francisco.

Toulouse Group, audio/visual integration specialists for the New Zealand Government at the Emirates Team New Zealand base, picked BrightSign for the project, according to the announcement. Emirates Team New Zealand is a two-time winner of the event and is expected to be among the front-runners for this year's title, the announcement said. This America's Cup installation is the latest in a long line of collaborative efforts between Toulouse Group and BrightSign. In the past few years alone, Toulouse Group utilized BrightSign's digital signage players in many venues, including the award-winning New Zealand Pavilion at the Shanghai World Expo, the 7,000-square-foot museum at Rotorua Museum New Zealand, and recent new exhibition installs at Carter Observatory New Zealand with its full-dome digital theater.

"The America's Cup is about much more than competition on the water — it's a months-long gathering of the international sailing community, and our presence in the America's Cup Village will be the team's home away from home through September," said Marc Simpson, founder and principal of Toulouse Group. "This hospitality lounge is the 'off-the-water' representation of the team and of our country, so it was important to construct a lounge that showcases the very latest technology, and BrightSign enabled us to do precisely that."

While the installation was completed by AV integrator Toulouse Group, the hospitality lounge itself will be staffed by individuals who lack any formal A/V training, which necessitated the installation of equipment that is easy to use and reliable, the company said.

Emirates Team New Zealand's hospitality lounge encompasses a total of 9,600 square feet, comprised of a main gathering area, several ancillary rooms and an expansive outdoor deck. An extensive Ethernet network is deployed throughout the lounge, connecting a total of 23 BrightSign HD120 and HD1020 digital signage players that feed and sync content across a massive video wall comprised of 19 full-HD 1080p displays. Sound is deployed with two BrightSign players and an EM100 expansion module. Six channels of audio fill the space with sound effects and ambient audio all in sync with the video wall. The remaining four BrightSign players feed projectors that project content on a series of white, sail-shaped screens that meld with the nautical theme of the event.

"Hosting the America's Cup in the San Francisco Bay Area, it's expected that the event will showcase the best technology that's emerging from the Silicon Valley," said Jeff Hastings, BrightSign's CEO. "We're very pleased that Emirates Team New Zealand and its AV integrator Toulouse Group chose BrightSign, and we're happy to play a part in this impressive installation."

The America's Cup officially opens on July 4. The competition lasts nearly three months and includes a number of racing events such as the Louis Vuitton Cup and the Red Bull Youth America's Cup. The event culminates with the America's Cup Finals, which run from September 7-21.

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